


Heaven’s Mandate

by Teabanana



Category: Perfect World (Video Game)
Genre: Adventure, Gen, PWI, Perfect World International
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:21:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25239931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Teabanana/pseuds/Teabanana
Summary: As the war between the three races rose to a climax, mysterious forces began to act from the darkness. Faith will be tested, loss will be tasted, hope will be doubted. “But my child, never forget—the bonds between people will transcend the limits of life. That is the power of mankind.” This is the story of Perfect World’s unity, and it all began, when...
Kudos: 5





	1. Preface

**Author's Note:**

> This is a story that has been ten years in the making and has finally been put into words.

The world exists in a delicate balance between constant life and death. We often forget that the birth of every child is accompanied by the departure of another. Your elderly neighbour, that you have spoken with, have known for years, have thought about, have seen in passing, can no longer be reached. Your stranger, that you have sought for, longed for, and felt for, has succumbed, and is no longer here. Your comrade, that you have stood with, cared for, and fought with, is now away. Permanently away. And that daunts me.

And I have become another one of your comrades.

I'm sorry, Fira, for leaving you too. Forgive me for being selfish, but keeping you safe is that person's greatest wish. And I want to fulfil his wish even though he is no longer here.

You were the sunshine of our lives. We came from under the trees, from the cool shade of grace and control. To us, you were the light that reflected off our leaves and made us bright. You gave that person hope for the first time in what seems to be an eternity. And to me, you were my first friend. You will never understand how much you have inadvertently done for us. This warm, precious time with you has been the happiest time in our cold, sharpened lives.

We will never leave you, Fira. Part of us lives on in you. The only remnants of my magic, and his magic, lives on in you. If you are ever forced to choose between life and death, we will choose death, so you can choose life. When the time comes, you will know.

As long as you are alive, it is never truly goodbye.


	2. City

With a final glance at the small house that had been her home for sixteen years, Firany stepped out into the yellow sun and locked the door.

She lived in the busy City of the Lost, always lovely and lively and full of people. Merchants, missionaries, soldiers and travellers, there was never a quiet moment in the Untamed origin. This place was well known for its dry lands and bold sunsets, as well as abundance of ores, sandstone and other crafting materials. You only had to take one step outside the city to find pig iron to dig. It was also full of farm life: rabbits, horses, house cats and dogs, along with rams just in the outskirts. This city was always living, much like its animalistic inhabitants: the Venomancers and Barbarians.

According to the legends of the world's creation, the Untamed were formed from Pangu's body. Stories say the Untamed were originally animals living in the terrain of barren desserts, but when Pangu's own flesh came to the earth, these animals acquired the forms of half-beast, half-human beings; they had the intelligence of a human and the strength of a beast. Pangu's flesh moistened the land, making it fertile as a gift for the new race to cultivate.

The Untamed were strong in stature, had great vitality, and lived healthy lives to old age. Their women had the appearance of human women with additional animalistic features linked to their spirit animal: cheeky furry ears, a fox's teasing smile, bodies flexible and sinuous, movements fluid like water. They had mysterious, sensuous demeanours that made them so very alluring to the ones around them.

Their men stood upright with bodies of human men, but were so close to the land that their heads and skin took on the appearance of their spirit animal. Some barbarians had particularly large stature, physical strength, skill, and mental conviction. In the first days of the Untamed society, these barbarians took on the role of pack leader, akin to an animal king.

While the men had the traditional role of protecting the women and the young, the women were no weaker than the men. Venomancers were proficient apothecaries, with generations of knowledge in traditional Untamed brews. They also tamed animals, whether as a protector when travelling to the outskirts, or as an assistant in everyday life. They utilised magic of the woods to defeat unwanted enemies, be it an overexcited wild boar, or poison for the pests. The Untamed were a capable, strong race.

Firany was born thin and small. Because of this, she was often bullied by other Venomancers in the school of the Untamed. Fox spirits with fat, luscious tails; voluptuous and mysterious. Devilish bat spirits with little horns of mischief on their crowns: the troublemakers. Dingos, agile and flexible. Rabbits, intelligent and highly cherished as future priestesses with connections to the moon. Cheetahs, calm and reserved even as youth. Firany was no alluring beast. She did not have the teasing confidence of Venomancers assured in their femininity, nor did she look very animalistic in the first place. She was deer-spirited, with small, pink, delicate horns and no tail.

But that was okay, because Radial was there. He was her older brother, six years her senior. A roaring tiger, strong, loyal and kind. He encouraged her, guided her, taught her skills and crafts. He also protected her from dangerous rocks, caught her when she tripped, took her outside the city to catch frogs. If Firany being small was a punishment from the gods to their parents for producing such a strong barbarian, someone that could be a pack leader, she would gladly accept the consequence. Firany didn't hate her own kind. She resented her classmates' teasing, envied the fellowship of Barbarians. But Firany didn't hate anyone. Everyone was born innocent and faultless, treasured and cherished by their mothers as the most precious jewel of the world. She believed that people were naturally good, that there were multiple sides to every person, and nobody deserved to be totally despised for a one time mean-spirited act. She was a kind child.

However, she only knew how to be kind, not how to be clever. She was naive and innocent, sheltered and shielded and protected her whole life. She wasn't at all alike to Radial, who had a heart as wide as the sea but simultaneously possessed talent and skill so raw and potent that he shone brightly amongst the giant sea of Untamed soldiers. She was just a little girl who relied on her brother a little too much, a child who would feel lost if the world around her was disturbed, who was afraid of change and did not truly understand what it meant to change herself and adapt to the new world.

On Firany's fifteenth birthday, Radial disappeared.

On her sixteenth birthday, she left home to search for him.


	3. Outskirts

A year ago, Radial disappeared from the lands of the Untamed.

Someone had filed a disappearance report for him dated on Firany's birthday. No one could tell her who had submitted this report. Just the previous week he was still on leave after a long deployment to the edge of the Untamed land. He had told Firany that he needed to go somewhere for a little while and would bring her a birthday present when he got back. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary at the time!

The present that Firany wanted the most was to spend time with Radial; he had barely even a moment to spend at home since he began getting deployed. The Elder and the Untamed council saw great potential in him and eventually planned on making him a general, but for now, he was just a leader for a small, over utilised troop of soldiers.

Everyone liked Radial. There really were not many bad things to say about him; he was never the subject of defamatory gossip. He was unwavering and brave, but never arrogant. He had a sense of leadership and charisma in him that was undoubtedly perceivable and deeply admired. Even injured, he would be encouraging and leading the army of despairing soldiers with a big smile. He treated those under him as equals, a brother in arms, but took care of them wherever possible. He comforted the youngest recruits who missed their homes, shared with them his own experiences and brought reassurance to the unsure. He was like a big brother, a solace, a priceless presence in the frontlines of war. Radial was so understanding, so considerate and so kind.

Those above him believed he was born to be a soldier, as he was strong both physically and mentally, more often bringing achievements rather than failures from missions, and more often composed and confident than not. In fact, the only time Firany could remember seeing Radial significantly shaken was the incident at Dragon's End three years ago where one Elf single-handedly destroyed an entire battalion of lion Barbarians with endless bolts of violent lightning. There were many unfortunate casualties in that battle, many soldiers who were not able to return home and see their family again, many who returned and took with them fears and scars in their heads and hearts. For the Untamed civilians, this incident hardened their dislike for the Elves into the shape of hatred, such that neighbourhood children and new recruits had something to believe in: a goal, a concrete enemy. They had not seen the harshness of war with their own eyes; it was merely their innate pride and dignity that enraged them in honour of those who were harmed.

Legends say the three races of the land were created in Pangu's own image. Each race received a part of Pangu's own being so they may be like him and would not fall to darkness. The Untamed received his body, so that they may be strong. The Elves received his blood, so that they may be pure. The Humans received his spirit, so that they may be brave. However, this did not stop the three races from being at war. This war had been going on for as long as the land's inhabitants could remember. Perhaps it was the natural desire to possess, to occupy more land and hold more resources. Perhaps it was the fear of the unfamiliar, of different appearances and senses of superiority. There were too many potential reasons and contributing factors, like the Unicorn Massacre between the Humans and Elves, the death of the Winged Tiger causing tension between the Elves and Untamed, the love and hate of flirtation and oppression between the Untamed and Humans.

If only there was a common objective that could bring the world together.

Luckily, the civilians in this time were still able to live in tranquillity, such that children could grow up playing, go to school to learn, and not be afraid for their lives. The birth of the Winged Tiger did bring decades of relative peace, after all, and perhaps civilians unexposed to the harsh reality of the frontlines were still riding on the tail of this time.

The outside world was foreign to Firany. She had never been further than the Broken Bridge Village, and even then that was many years ago. If she remembered correctly, the apothecary there was also quite an information broker. He had a keen ear for all sorts of miscellaneous things, such as how many pups were born on average in a Sable Minkii litter this year, which Venomancers were involved in the most recent relationship scandals, and the state of affairs at the frontlines.

The last one was what Firany was most interested in. Radial would surely not leave without saying goodbye unless it had been something extremely important, like an unplanned ambush maybe, or something even more severe. Anyway, finding Apothecary Lei was her first priority!

The Broken Bridge Village, like its name suggests, was located next to a broken bridge. This bridge paved the way across the Creeping Stream, towards Wolf Totem Valley with its vicious, aggressive Bitter and Sharptooth wolves. Despite its proximity to danger, the Broken Bridge Village was a peaceful and happy place, where people lived simple lives, away from the complexity and layers of the City of the Lost. It was only half a day's journey from the City to the Village, and it was a relatively straightforward journey, a dirt road distinctly visible in the grassy land. Firany stepped outside the City gates with great confidence that she would reach her destination by mid-afternoon. It wasn't too hard to follow a road, after all, even if she hadn't ever travelled alone before. This was the whole point, wasn't it? She needed to rely on herself now. She wanted to find Radial no matter where he was, regardless of how far she had to go.

The outskirts of the City were familiar. As she walked further and further from the city, away from its stifling weight and intensity, a sense of calm came over her. Firany breathed in the fresh air of nature and sighed in contentment. She loved the outskirts, perhaps more than she did the busy bustling urban life. The wind tousling through her hair as it made it's way past her. The infinite bounds of nature and its imagination. Wasn't it amazing how the world existed in so many shapes and colours? The many types of grass, jagged little rocks, damp springy earth and dusty crumbly sand. The smell of trees and flowers, pure, crisp and invigorating. The different shades of green and brown, the vibrant coats of Short Tooth Kittens, the beauty of the blue sky and the snowy white of clouds. Not that Firany has ever seen snow; nowhere snowed in the Land of the Untamed. Perhaps one day she could be privy to such a sight.

To her left was the lengthy, untroubled Creeping Stream. Occasionally a turtle would rise above the waterline, it's pale shell catching the mid-morning sunlight, but otherwise, the stream was at peace. To her right were a row of short trees, spread far apart, animals scattered around and in between. Past that were hills that eventually led to the south-eastern cliffs which oversaw the entire City of the Lost. There were no people nearby, only nature, untarnished, full and complete.

When she was younger, and Radial was less busy, they would often come to the riverside together to catch frogs. The treefrogs were clever creatures and would spray disorienting green mists at them, but frogs could never hope to escape Radial's speed and agility. It became a hobby after a while, chasing them around the riverbank, catching them, then setting them free again for next time. Firany was nowhere as agile and fast as Radial, and would often jump at a frog and miss, falling into the water instead. If she looked particularly miserable on that day, Radial would smile with fond amusement and haul her up onto his back, piggy-backing her the whole way home. That seemed like a very long time ago now.

Was it her or were the outskirts more restless than usual? The Short Tooth Kittens bristled whenever she neared one and the cactopods seemed spikier than usual. Even the Oddfoot Pups were chirping too loudly today, as if they were competing with the infamous screech of the neighbouring Varicose Scorpion. Firany took care to walk a little further away from them today, even though they would usually be more than happy to accept a pat on the head. It was concerning to see the animals distressed. Perhaps she would mention that to the apothecary and ask if there was something she could do.

Gradually, she registered the unfamiliarity of her surroundings. Flying above her were some blue waspkins and white-winged fowls that looked completely foreign to her. She had no recollection of encountering these creatures on her last journey to the Broken Bridge Village. She also certainly did not remember coming across the large stone dog statue that she was currently approaching. Come to think of it, the road did branch a while earlier which she didn't expect, and she did take the right turn which she thought was probably right. She couldn't see the hills leading to the City of the Lost anymore.

Surely she wasn't lost?


	4. Valley

When people are lost in the wilderness, naturally, they panic.

Firany was no exception.

She looked around in alarm, a frantic urgency building in her eyes as she searched for some sort of familiarity. She turned and began backtracking her steps, wanting to return to her original path. The road seemed to get longer and longer, so she walked more quickly, more hastily, until she was jogging anxiously along the dirt path.

She was too afraid of unfamiliar environments. Easily startled, easily scared; like a deer caught in the headlights of surprise. She did not have the mysterious confidence built into the bones of other venomancers, those who were born to lead, to be prominent, destined to place their mark in history. She was just her, ordinary, small, not at all brave. She came to a hasty stop as she arrived at another crossroad, the two paths seemingly taunting her in their alikeness. She could not remember which way she had come from. She wanted to go home…

No! She couldn't go back already! She had decided, had promised herself, that she needed to find him. She closed her eyes and took a long, deep breath, just like the way Radial had taught her. Pause, breath, feet in contact with the ground beneath, stomach rising and falling with each in and out breath. The air flows in easily, effortlessly, smoothing the turbulence of unrest. The air flows out, she hears the wind, feels its caress on her cheeks. The air will always be around her, it will never leave. She opened her eyes and saw a small brown dog walk past the path on the left. She breathed a sigh of relief. This breed of dog was commonly seen in the City of the Lost as a household pet; surely the Village would be in that direction.

This road was steeper than the other one, a wide path on an ascending angle between rows of tall, towering trees. Firany could see the blue sky and white clouds in the distance while the wind became sharper against her face. Perhaps she was nearing the river, she thought; there was always a breeze by the water. Luckily the sun was still high in the sky; although her slight detour took up quite some time, there was still a while before sundown.

It was strange though; she expected the road to flatten eventually, but it seemed to grow steeper and steeper. The trees were progressively becoming more bare, even though it was not yet Autumn. The sides of the road seemed to elevate, morphing into tall cliffs, surrounding her as they guided her into a valley. It had a strange atmosphere that left the air feeling heavy, an unseen force pushing into her from all directions. The road grew wider but more uneven; the dirt that made up the ground was dense and compact as if it had been smoothed over many years of use, but rocks protruded from the road at random locations. Grass was scarce but some somewhat strange-looking herbs grew sparingly from certain spots, as if the soil here was not meant for cultivating normal life. She didn't remember the Broken Bridge Village being near this kind of habitat, couldn't imagine this path leading to the warm and happy village even as a shortcut from the main road. A nervous uneasiness was forming a pit in her stomach. Perhaps she ought to have taken the other route after all…

Suddenly, a snarling sound came from behind her. She froze, her heart accelerating, blood rushing in her ears like a soundless wave. Her head turned mechanically in the direction of the sound, eyes taking in far more detail as the world became vivid and harsh in its colour and contrast. The scent of bloodthirst filled her nostrils. The sound of danger woke her from the dreamy world of aspiration and determination. What faced her was a feline creature that she had definitely not seen before. It had blue-grey fur like a wolf's, long protruding ears resembling antennas, decorated by yellow and black stripes. The same stripes covered the tip of its tail, thin and short as if it was a dagger. It had three claws on each paw, thin and deadly blades on an efficient weapon. Most abnormal of all, it had a long, thick, silver spike protruding from each of its joints. Like horns but also thorns, occupying the narrow space on its elbows, shoulders, spine and head. Its back was covered by scales resembling fish scales, while its forearms had deep scars in the shape of crosses which could only result from lacerations that once went down to bone. Its large, slanted yellow eyes were fixed on her, and below them, its mouth was open, sharp silver teeth bared at her with a continuous hiss. In an everlasting second, it bent its hind legs, like a curious toddler pressing on a spring. Then, with an uncontrolled force that a child could not hope to withstand, the spring unloaded, and the beast pounced towards her.

An irrepressible scream burst from Firany's lips. At a speed she never thought she was capable of, she spun and bolted away from the valley. This time it was a descending path, gravity assisting her and building her speed. She could hear the quick steps of the beast behind her, remaining the same distance from her despite her desperate sprint. She did not dare to look back. Her leg muscles pulled and strained as her strides widened too much each time from the power of gravity's acceleration. Her steps became unstable as her feet began stumbling over the dirt road. Her foot gave out under her at one stage and an acute pain hit her, but she dared not stop. The biting wind washed through her hair like the coldness and harshness of reality.

In her hastiness, she tripped over a rock protruding from the path and lurched. Due to her uncontrolled speed, she was carried forward into the air, bounced once on the ground, then landed rolling unstoppably like a ball kicked by an angry child. Her head hit against another rock, hard, the impact causing stars to burst over her vision. And then, she saw nothing.


	5. Spring

"...hey...wa..up…"

Firany slowly blinked open her bleary eyes. To her surprise, the ground was parallel to her vision! The trees grew from right to left, rather than down to up. Maybe gravity disappeared, maybe the only reason the trees were still coming from the right was because of their roots buried deep into the ground. The sky was everywhere, the blue pigment of twilight filling the landscape like a painting—it was the strongest pigment after all! The world was a spectacular work of art! A perfect world! She smiled, feeling so light and weightless that she could float into the blue sky at any moment, ready to become part of the wind. Somehow this all made perfect sense to her.

"Hey, you okay?" A voice said somewhere towards her left. Firany attempted turning her neck, but her body resisted. Could the blue air be pushing on her and keeping her still? She vaguely remembered flying with something blue. She gave up after a brief try and strained her eyes in the direction of the voice.

There was a person standing in front of her. Their feet were planted like a tree's, spread slightly, attached to the right-sided ground. She could only see up to their slightly bent knees as her eyes could not twist any further. Leather boots, brown pants, fabric that looked quite soft.

"Hey! Don't close...aga…...ey...!"

* * *

The next time Firany opened her eyes, she was looking at the stars.

Above her was a deep, blue, boundless sky. Small bright specks of white and blue light scattered throughout the dark canvas, dazzling and endless but never overwhelming. In the perimeters of her vision, she could see a large, leafy branch, one of many from the tall trees surrounding her. A few white-winged fowls floated far above, the moonlight catching on their silvery feathers. There was no smoke or fog, no heaviness or impurity. She had not seen a sky so beautiful for a very long time.

"You awake?" A voice sounded beside her.

Firany would have jumped if she was able, but at the first movement, her body protested with intense pain and heaviness that felt like the weight of the world. Grimacing, she gingerly turned her head in the direction of the voice, moving the other parts of her body as little as possible.

There was a fire next to her, its orange light casting large shadows onto the ground. It was warm, crackling with the sound of burning sticks, and filled her nostrils with the scent of woodfire. Next to the fire sat a person who looked different from what she was used to. He did not have any traits of a spirit animal— no ears, no horns, no fur. Firany saw smooth skin, short black hair only on top of the head, and dark, almond-shaped eyes. These eyes connected with hers in an almost tangible way— what a strange sensation.

"Where…" She started, her voice raspy from gasping the frigid valley wind. "Who…"

"I saw you collapsed over there," He said, tilting his head one way. "You seem to be in pretty rough shape." He glanced back at her, his eyes moving from her face to her feet.

Firany pushed herself up to lean back on her elbows, brows furrowing with effort. Straining her neck, she saw her right foot was wrapped in a makeshift bandage of brown cloth. She turned to her companion and realised that his upper body was clothed in the same coloured fabric, although he only had one long sleeve — the other one seemed to have been ripped off hastily given how ragged and uneven it was at the shoulder.

"Did you save me?" Firany asked, the crease between her brows softening at the thought of the stranger's kindness. He didn't know her, didn't owe her anything, but he still sacrificed his own belongings to treat her injury. People were good after all!

"I wouldn't say 'saved'," the man answered, averting his eyes from her foot into the distance. "You were lying by a rock in the middle of the road. I think you hit your head pretty hard, there was quite a bit of blood on the rock." His eyes moved back to her face, or rather, her head.

It was only now that Firany noticed the pounding in her head. It felt like a tight band was squeezing around her skull. Her complexion ashened in discomfort as the pressure made her eyesight spin and stomach flip. She slowly lifted a hand to press against her forehead and found that it was also wrapped in cloth. It was, in fact, wrapped extremely tightly, perhaps too tightly. She winced.

Her slight movement did not go unnoticed by her companion. "Sorry… I'm not too good with these things," he said, a pang of guilt in his tone as his eyes followed her motion with concern.

"No, please don't apologise, I'm very grateful." Firany quickly responded, lowering her hand and waving it to gesture as such. "Thank you so much."

"It's nothing." He said, looking away again. This time, Firany followed his gaze. Past the flat grasslands in front of them was a large lake, surrounded by cliffs so tall that she could barely see the top. Long ripples glazed the water's surface in a quiet, melancholic way. Further on, the lake thinned into a river, continuing beyond her line of vision.

Firany finally managed to hoist herself into a sitting position. She attempted to bend her knees and get into a more comfortable position, but the action intensified the burning in her leg muscles so she abandoned the idea. Holding herself unsteadily, she peered at her surroundings. Behind the fire was a small wooden hut, dark and dim in contrast to the bright flame next to her. There were barely any signs of living around the hut, no buckets for washing, no clothesline for laundry, no pots stacked outside that were too big to fit inside the house. The only domestic items visible in the darkness was a stack of firewood. She looked towards her companion inquiringly. "Is this...?"

"Don't worry," the man replied, his eyes not moving away from the distance. "It's just me here."

"Oh," she responded, not sure what else to say. Did he prefer to sleep out under the stars? She definitely would if this was her home, because the sky here was an incredible sight. But she couldn't say the same for other people. She knew the other Venomancers and Barbarians near her age found her strange. Perhaps she was, indeed. Unique in an unappreciated way.

However, he resembled neither a Venomancer nor Barbarian. His appearance was youthful and close to her in age, but his demeanour seemed older. If she had to decide, then…

"My name is Firany", she introduced, "I'm a Venomancer from the City of the Lost. What's your name?"

His gaze shifted to her this time as he spoke. "I'm Kan. I'm Human."

So this was a human! Firany had never seen one before! They looked a little bit different indeed, but not that dissimilar to herself! Why was a human here though? Surely she was still in the Untamed Territory? She couldn't have ventured that far in just a day!

"Have you always lived here?" She asked, trying to be tactful and discreet. This person seemed nice enough but Radial had always told her that she needed to be more careful when it came to people...

"Just the past few months," he said, meeting her eyes again. He had a gaze that was hard to read, and despite their eyes locking, Firany had no idea what he was thinking or feeling.

"Where is this?" She asked tentatively. She didn't want to intrude on someone who had helped her. Although, despite him being rather impartial, she did not feel uncomfortable or ignored. There was something about him that made her feel like he would not hurt her...a gut feeling, perhaps.

He chuckled this time. "You don't have to be so nervous." His eyes crinkled and she suddenly saw amusement in his features. A smirk decorated his lips as he spoke, "This place is called Dribbling Spring. Over there," he pointed in the direction of the lake, "is the tomb of the Untamed Hero."

"You know the Untamed Hero?" Firany perked up. The Untamed Hero was a legend known by all the Untamed. He was a general that existed over a hundred years ago and led the Untamed armies to countless victories. Some considered him the truest Untamed Warrior, one who lived by strength and justice, freedom and liberty, fearless of the world's crushing constraints and expectations. As with all stories and legends, details were lost over the many years of storytelling. People naturally only wanted to remember the good part about their heroes. By the time the story had reached Firany's generation, the Untamed Hero had become a flawless, perfect, unrealistic man.

But she knew the original tale of the Untamed Hero! Radial had heard it from an old soldier on one of his deployments near the Human territory. In the current age, there were more Humans than Elves and Untamed combined. Not all Humans were fighters, some were simply civilians who wanted nothing to do with war. There were farmers with booming loud laughs who generously gave them food and water when they were starving despite their race. There were sophisticated scholars who studied for years but had nowhere to practice their academic learnings once war took over. These scholars took refuge in small villages and became teachers for the children. Some of these children were shy little things that hid behind the legs of taller bodies. Some were more outgoing and thought Radial's furry head was adorable, begging day after day to ride on his shoulders. Most of these children had never been far from their village, and many of them would not live to become adults. These children were innocent, had no part in the conflict between the races. They did not deserve to be hated for the sole reason that they were born Human.

If this Human, this person named Kan, knew of the Untamed Hero, could he be one of the Humans Radial had met on that journey?

Kan chuckled again. "I don't think anyone alive now knows him personally," he smiled mildly, then sighed, then began, "but I have heard of him."

  
  
  
  



End file.
